Chase vs Monzo: Cashback, Savings and Everyday Banking Compared

Chase vs Monzo is a genuinely close call, because the two accounts are trying to win you over in completely different ways. Chase, backed by J.P. Morgan, leads with cashback and a headline savings boost for new customers. Monzo, the app bank that started the whole category, leads with budgeting tools, Pots and a free account that does almost everything without asking for a penny. Neither is objectively better. The right pick depends on whether you want your card to earn money back or want your app to help you control where the money goes. Plenty of people, as it happens, end up keeping both.

The quick answer

Open Chase if you spend a fair amount on everyday cards and want cashback plus a strong first-year savings rate. Open Monzo if you want the best free budgeting experience, Pots for organising money, and fee-free spending abroad without juggling conditions. Running both is a common and sensible setup: Chase for cashback and short-term savings, Monzo as the everyday account that keeps your budget honest.

Cashback

This is Chase’s headline feature and Monzo’s blind spot.

Chase pays 2% cashback, capped at £20 a month, on everyday debit and credit card spending. It is not automatic, though. To earn it in a given month you need to make at least 15 payments by card or Direct Debit and hold a combined balance of £1,000 or more across your Chase saver accounts. Hit those two conditions and the cashback lands the following month. Miss them and you earn nothing, so it rewards people who genuinely run their spending through the account.

Monzo’s free and paid current accounts do not offer straight cashback on everyday spending. Monzo’s value sits elsewhere, in budgeting and savings features rather than card rewards. So if cashback is your priority and you can meet Chase’s conditions comfortably, Chase wins this round outright.

Savings rates

Rates move constantly at both banks, so always check the live figure in-app before you act. Here is where they stand as a snapshot.

Chase runs a standard Saver at 2.25% AER (2.23% gross) variable, calculated daily and paid monthly. New customers can get a boosted rate of 4.5% AER, which is a 2.25% boost fixed for 12 months on top of the standard rate. After that year the boost falls away and you drop back to the standard variable rate, so it is worth a diary note to review it. Chase also pays a higher rate on its round-up account, where spare change from purchases is saved automatically.

Monzo splits savings into Pots. Its Instant Access Savings Pot has paid around 2.75% AER (variable) on the free plan, rising to roughly 3.25% AER for customers on the Perks and Max plans. Monzo also offers Cash ISAs in-app.

On a straight free-account basis the two are close, but Chase’s first-year boost is the more generous headline number. The catch is that it is a first-year offer, so the sensible move is to use it while it lasts and reassess before the twelve months are up.

Monthly plans and fees

Monzo’s free current account is genuinely complete: a card, instant spending notifications, Pots, budgeting tools, Direct Debits, standing orders and fee-free card spending abroad, all for nothing. Monzo then offers three paid plans. Extra costs £3 a month, Perks costs £7 a month, and Max costs £17 a month. The paid tiers add higher savings boosts, virtual cards, advanced round-ups and lifestyle perks such as an annual Railcard on Perks and Max, plus travel and phone cover on Max.

Chase has no monthly account fee. Its model is different: rather than sell you a plan, it ties its best rewards (cashback and the boosted saver) to how you use the account and how much you keep in savings. You pay nothing to hold it, but you only unlock the perks by meeting the activity and balance conditions.

Everyday banking and budgeting

Monzo is still the strongest app in the category for managing money day to day. Pots let you ringfence cash for bills, holidays or an emergency fund; you can automate transfers, round up spending into savings, set category budgets and get a live view of what is left to spend. For anyone who has struggled to keep a budget, this is the reason to pick Monzo.

Chase covers the essentials well: instant notifications, a clean app, round-ups and easy access to its savers. It is a tidy, reliable everyday account, but it is not trying to be a budgeting coach in the way Monzo is. If detailed money management matters to you, Monzo has the edge.

Spending abroad

Both are strong for travel. Monzo charges no foreign transaction fee on card payments and passes through the Mastercard exchange rate with no markup, though the free plan caps fee-free cash withdrawals outside the EEA before a small fee applies. Chase also offers fee-free spending abroad, which is one reason it became popular with travellers. For most trips either card will serve you well, so this is unlikely to be the deciding factor on its own.

Safety

Both are covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, so eligible deposits are protected up to £85,000 per person, per banking licence. Monzo holds its own UK banking licence. Chase UK is a trading name of J.P. Morgan Europe Limited, which is also FSCS protected. You can read more on the FSCS website. Both are fully regulated UK banks, so the choice comes down to features and rewards, not safety.

Which should you choose?

Choose Chase if you run plenty of spending through your cards, can meet the 15-payment and £1,000-balance conditions to earn cashback, and want to grab the first-year savings boost. Choose Monzo if you want the best free budgeting tools, Pots to organise your money, and a complete everyday account with no strings attached.

The smartest option for many people is not to choose at all: keep Monzo as the main account that runs your budget, and use Chase alongside it for cashback and a competitive savings rate in year one. For more on the wider field, see our guides to the best digital banks and banking apps in the UK and Monzo vs Starling.

Frequently asked questions

Is Chase or Monzo better as a main bank account? Monzo tends to work better as a main account because of its budgeting tools, Pots and complete free feature set. Chase works best as a second account for cashback and a boosted savings rate, though many people happily run both side by side.

Does Monzo offer cashback like Chase? No. Monzo’s free and paid current accounts do not pay straight cashback on everyday spending. Its value comes from budgeting features, Pots and savings, whereas Chase’s headline perk is 2% cashback up to £20 a month with conditions.

How do I qualify for Chase cashback? In a given month you need to make at least 15 payments by card or Direct Debit and hold a combined balance of £1,000 or more across your Chase saver accounts. Meet both and the 2% cashback, capped at £20, is paid the following month.

Are Chase and Monzo both safe? Yes. Both are regulated UK banks covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, protecting eligible deposits up to £85,000 per person, per banking licence. Monzo holds its own licence and Chase UK operates under J.P. Morgan.

Can I have both a Chase and a Monzo account? Yes, and it is a popular setup. There is no cost to holding either account, so you can use Monzo for everyday budgeting and Chase for cashback and short-term savings, moving money between them as needed.

Does Chase have a monthly fee? No. Chase has no monthly account fee. Instead of charging for a plan, it links its cashback and boosted saver rewards to how actively you use the account and how much you keep in its savers.